Wednesday, January 26, 2011

baby!

January 21, 2011
“Girls, the baby!!” were the first words I heard this morning at 5:42. I felt like a fireman being called to a raging fire! It was pouring down rain and when Lisbeth got to us she was already have 7 contractions in 10 minutes! We brought her into the middle room in our clinic which is Cecilia’s office where she sees patients. We have a large black “birthing chair” (for lack of a better name :)) that we got her seated in and as comfortable as she could be at that point. The next thing to do was to get an IV started. Since I’m the nurse that’s always my job- so I got everything ready but every time I was about to put it in she would have another contraction so I had to time it just right to catch her between contractions. When I finally timed it right I did get it in on the first try- thank goodness! :) Then we got out all of our supplies- which unfortunately wasn’t much. We had an emergency birthing kit so we had the bare minimum, but it ended up working just fine. Lauren bolied some water and by the time we had everything out and ready Lisbeth was about ready to push. I’m sure it seemed like an eternity for her, but it went really fast for me. After 4 good pushes we had a little baby girl in our hands! I rubbed and patted her little back while Lauren suctioned out her nose and mouth. Finally we got a good strong cry out of her. I was so happy! We were so blessed that everything went as well as it did. Then I helped Cecilia clamp the umbilical cord, then she cut it. Lauren and I gave her a little bath and got her dressed, then handed her off to dad. I helped Cecilia deliver the placenta and then she taught me to make sure that it was all completely intact and there were no pieces missing. It was so awesome!
This whole experience was just so impressive to me. Lisbeth was sooo strong thru the whole thing- she hardly screamed at all. If it was me I think all of KM 8 would have heard me. Haha. We didn’t have anything fancy but we did well with what we did have and God’s hand was definitely with us. I was so excited to be able to experience this here- I haven’t even taken my OB class yet at Union and I’m already helping deliver babies. That rocks. :)
Going thru this experience here in Peru made me realize something much deeper as well. It made me think about how much excess we have in the US. We have anything and everything you could ever want to make this process “comfortable.” But for centuries, this is how women have done it- and in even worse conditions than our clinic! And somehow the human race is still here. Wow. Now, I’m not saying that I have anything against hospitals and the cleanliness and comfort of the US. I grew up there, it’s all I know, and I’m definitely having my children in the States. BUT, I think it’s a good reminder for us to think about all that we HAVE in the States. It’s not only what we have to make child birth bearable, it’s all the other “things” we have at home to make life easier and more comfortable. Look around your house and think about all the little things you have. How many of those little things could you do without? Yeah… pretty eye opening if you actually think about it. I realize that more and more every day I’m here. There are so many things that I’ve had to do without this year and I’m still alive and kickin’. Just a little something to think about.